High-speed mother Shelley Rudman of Great Britain threatens to wreck home favorite Mellisa Hollingsworth's dream of Olympic gold when the skeleton competition reaches its climax at the Whistler Sliding Centre this month.
Getting kicked out of the Torino Olympics and labeled a drug cheat just hours before the 2006 opening ceremony remains a low point in American racer Zach Lund's life. "Going through all that, it's made me who I am now," Lund says.
Five of the six athletes Torino medalists are back to defend their Olympic hardware, but they'll have to fend off both familiar rivals and emerging challengers.
Martins Dukurs ruled this season's World Cup competition to win seven overall competitions and four gold medals to take the 2010 title. In his second Winter Games, he'll aim to grab Latvia's first-ever Olympic gold medal in men's skeleton.
Two-time World Cup champion Katie Uhlaender is ready for her second Winter Games, after overcoming injury to finish seventh in the overall standings this season. Here's a look back at her Olympic debut in Torino, where she finished sixth.
With one Olympics behind her, a wiser, more experienced Katie Uhlaender looks toward Vancouver.
The 2007 World Cup champ on missing Torino, his need for speed and his vision for Vancouver.
In 2002, skeleton returned to the Olympic program for the first time since 1948. Competitors speed down the course face first on a one-person sled.
John Daly went triple gold during this season's Intercontinental Cup. Vancouver will mark the American's Olympic debut.
Jon Montgomery achieved a career highlight in 2009, winning the Whistler World Cup on the Olympic track.
| Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 USA | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
 GBR | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
 CAN | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
 SUI | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
 ITA | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
POV of Whistler track 
Vancouver outlook 
Model Olympian 
